Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2023
281. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Education if her Department has a policy to intervene with schools that demonstrate an above-average inability to retain teaching staff; if her Department monitors the turnover rates of teaching staff in State-funded schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32127/23]
View answerSchool boards of management/ ETBs are the employers of teachers and the recruitment and appointment of teachers to fill teaching posts is a matter for each individual school authority. The Department does not maintain policies on staff retention, as this is a role for a school's board of management or the relevant ETB.
Teachers notify school management, in writing, of their intention to resign and in general, teachers are required to provide three months’ notice specifying the date on which they will be leaving. A school may pay a teacher up to that leaving date and this information is communicated to the Department’s payroll service.
The number of teachers allocated for the 2022 / 2023 school year was 42,739 in primary schools and 34,250 in post primary schools. This is an increase of over 17,000 teachers employed in our schools over the 10 year period from 2011/2012 to 2022/2023.
Based on the information provided by schools to the Department’s Payroll Division, since 01 September 2022, the number of contracted teachers who have indicated they were not returning to teach in their school, and who did not take up a position in another primary, secondary, community or comprehensive school is as follows:
• 39 teachers in primary schools
• 72 teachers in non ETB post primary schools.
Some of the teachers who have indicated that they are not returning to teach may have taken up employment in the ETB sector.
Employee turnover is a key concern for employers across many different sectors of the economy both in Ireland and internationally. In an Irish context this is highlighted in the latest CIPD Ireland HR Practices in Ireland report which reports that a third of employers have reported a voluntary turnover rate of 16% or higher. This is a significant increase from 2022 when 21% of employers experienced the same level of worker departures.
The resignation figures experienced by other sectors are not reflected in the education sector. It is positive that the numbers of teachers reported as resigning is consistent with previous years and the number of resignations accounts for less than half a percent of the overall number of teachers allocated to schools.
